Michael Saltman has been named the recipient of the 2004 Silver State Award. Bestowed by the UNLV Alumni Association, it is the most prestigious annual recognition presented to a nongraduate of the university.

Saltman is managing general partner and president of The Vista Group, a real estate development company. Saltman previously founded and served as managing general partner of the Flamingo- Decatur Partnership (developers of Renaissance Center West) and managing partner of Ford Aerospace and Communications Corporation Development, Las Vegas Technology Center.

He is an advocate for Midtown UNLV, a proposed project to revitalize the community surrounding UNLV's main campus. (Visit midtown.unlv.edu for more information.)

Saltman and his wife, Sonja, '78 BA and '80 MA Psychology, gave $1 million to the Saltman Center for Dispute Resolution at the William S. Boyd School of Law. Additionally, the Saltmans contributed $50,000 to the UNLV Foundation Building Fund and $10,000 in video equipment to the UNLV football program. The couple also funds a $1,000 award for a College of Liberal Arts graduate each year.

Michael Saltman's community activities include membership in the Urban Land Institute, Nevada Development Authority Board of Trustees, National Home Builders Association, the Clean Air Action Plan Task Force, and the World Presidents' Organization. He is a member of the Young Presidents Association and a board member of Nevada Dance Theatre, the Las Vegas Symphony, and Nevada Institute of Contemporary Arts.

Saltman was nominated to the Foundation Board of Trustees in 1986 and serves on the board's Real Estate Committee. He is on the Visiting Committee for UNLV's Physics Department, the Law School Advisory Committee, and is past chair of the Planned Giving Advisory Committee. He is also a big fan of UNLV baseball.